Sega's Shining series is one of gaming's most beloved franchises, but for the past few years western fans haven't been able to join the party, as all of the recent instalments have been strictly Japan only. However, that doesn't mean that we haven't been keeping a keen eye on upcoming entries, largely in the hope that we'll get the Shining Force sequel we've been holding out for since the Sega Saturn days.

However, Sega has thrown us a real curveball this time — Blade Arcus from Shining is a 2D fighting game which stars characters from recent entries in the series. Hands up if you were expecting that.

2D fighters have enjoyed something of a resurgence of late, with the likes of BlazBlue and Aquapazza getting releases in the west. Blade Arcus from Shining hasn't been confirmed for anything but the arcade market at the time of writing, but if it did receive a console port, would you be interested in picking it up? Let us know with a comment.

Damien has over a decade of professional writing experience under his belt, as well as a repulsively hairy belly. Rumours that he turned down a role in The Hobbit to work on Nintendo Life are, to the best of our knowledge, completely and utterly unfounded.